The World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) is an international, multi-professional non-governmental organization (NGO), including citizen volunteers and former patients. It was founded in 1948 in the same era as the United Nations (UN) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Aims The goal of this international organization includes; The prevention of mental and emotional disorders; The proper treatment and care of those with such disorders; And the promotion of mental health
The Federation, through its members and contacts in more than 94 countries on six continents, has responded to international mental health crises through its role as the only worldwide grassroots advocacy and public education organization in the mental health field. Its organizational and individual membership includes mental health workers of all disciplines, consumers of mental health services, family members, and concerned citizens. At its very outset the WFMH was concerned with educating both the public and influential professionals, and with human relations, with a view both to the health of individuals and that of groups and nations. The WFMH founding document, "Mental Health and World Citizenship", understood "world citizenship" in terms of a "common humanity" respecting individual and cultural differences, and declared that "the ultimate goal of mental health is to help [people] live with their fellows in one world.
Members include mental health service providers and service users. In 2009, the World Fellowship for Schizophrenia and Allied Disorders, an international network of families of people with serious mental illness, merged with the World Federation. The World Federation has close ties with the World Health Organization. For many years after its founding, the WFMH was the only NGO of its kind with a close working relationship with UN agencies, particularly the WHO. In recent decades, though, a number of international mental health organizations, often limited to members of particular professions, have developed. In varying degree they have filled needs formerly addressed mainly by WFMH. The WFMH envisions a world in which mental health is a priority for all people. Public policies and programs reflect the crucial importance of mental health in the lives of individuals. The first Director General of the WHO, G. Brock Chisholm, who was a psychiatrist, was one of the leaders in forming the federation with the goal of creating a representative organization that could consult with the UN on mental health issues.
The mission of the World Federation for Mental Health is to promote the advancement of mental health awareness, prevention of mental disorders, advocacy, and best practice recovery focused interventions worldwide. Mental health day is celebrated at the initiative of the World Federation of Mental Health and WHO supports this initiative through raising awareness on mental health issues using its strong relationships with the Ministries of health and civil society organizations across the globe. Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW) is an annual national public education campaign designed to help open the eyes of Canadians to the reality of mental illness. The week was established in 1992 by the Canadian Psychiatric Association, and is now coordinated by the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health (CAMIMH) in cooperation with all its member organizations and many other supporters across Canada.
List of presidents John Rawlings Rees (1948) - London, England Dr. Andre Repond (1949–1950) Prof. W. Line (1950–1951) - Toronto, Canada Prof. Alfonso Millan (1951–1952) - Mexico, DF Dr. M.K. el Kholy (1952–1953) - Cairo, Egypt Prof. H.C. Rumke (1953–1954) - Utrecht, Netherlands Dr. Frank Fremont-Smith (1954–1955) - New York, USA Prof. Nilo Maki (1955–1956) - Helsinki, Finland Dr. Eduardo Enrique Krapf (1956–1957) - Buenos Aires, Argentina Dr. Margaret Mead (1957–1958) - New York, USA Dr. Brock Chisholm (1957–1958) - Victoria, Canada Prof. Hans Hoff (1959–1960) - Vienna, Austria Prof. Paul Sivadon (1960–1961) - Paris, France Prof. A.C. Pacheco de Silva (1961–1962) - São Paulo, Brazil Dr. George S Stevenson (1961–1962) - New York, USA Dr. Phon Sangsingkeo (1962–1963) - Bangkok, Thailand Prof. G.P. Alivisatos (1963–1964) - Athens, Greece Dr. Alan Stoller (1964–1965) - Victoria, Australia Sir Samual Manuwa (1965–1966) - Lagos, Nigeria Dr. Otto Klineberg (1966–1967) - Canada Prof. Morris Carstairs (1968–1972) - Edinburgh, Scotland Prof. Michael Beaubrun (1972–1974) - Kingston, Jamaica Prof. Tsung-yi Lin (1975–1979) - Vancouver, Canada Mr. Gowan Guest (1979–1981) - Esq, Vancouver, Canada Prof. Eugene Brody (1981–1983) - Baltimore, USA Dr. Estefania Aldaba-Lim (1983–1985) - Manila, Philippines Mrs. Edith Morgan (1985–1987) - London, England Dr. Gamal M. Abou El Azayem (1987–1989) - Cairo, Egypt Dr. Stanislas Flache (1989–1991) - Geneva, Switzerland Dr. Max W. Abbott (1991–1993) - Auckland, New Zealand Dr. Federico Puente-Silva (1993–1995) - Mexico DF, Mexico Mrs. Beverly B. Long, Georgia (1995–1997) - USA Prof. Marten deVries (1997–1999) - Maastricht, Netherlands Dr. Ahmed Abou El Azayem (1999–2001) - Cairo, Egypt Mrs. Pirkko Lahti (2001–2003) - Helsinki, Finland Dr. Patt Franciosi (2003–2005) - Wisconsin, USA Mrs. Shona Sturgeon (2005–2007) - Cape Town, South Africa Prof. John R.M. Copeland (2007–2009) - London, England Mr. Anthony Fowke (2009–2011) - Perth, Australia Mrs. Deborah Wan (2011–2013) - Hong Kong, SAR Prof. George Christodoulou (2013–2015) - Greece Dr. Gabriel Ivbijaro (2015–2017) - United Kingdom Dr. Alberto Trimboli (2017–2019) - Buenos Aires, Argentina Dr. Ingrid Daniels (2019–2021) - South Africa Nasser Loza (2021–2023) - Egypt Professor Tsuyoshi Akiyama (2023- Present) - Japan
Notable members Werner Villinger – German psychiatrist, educating the public Tsung-yi Lin – Honorary president Eugene Brody – President, 1981 to 1983; Secretary General from 1983 to 1999.
Conferences and Congresses + Event Year Location Theme World Congress 1948 London, England, UK Founding meeting of WFMH World Congress 1951 Mexico DF, Mexico World Congress 1954 Toronto, Canada World Congress 1961 Paris, France World Congress 1968 London, England, UK World Congress 1973 Sydney, Australia Cultures in Collision (25th Anniversary Congress) World Congress 1977 Vancouver, Canada Today's Priorities in Mental Health: Knowing and Doing World Congress 1979 Salzburg, Austria The Mental Health of Children and Families World Congress 1981 Manila, Philippines Mental Health, Cultural Values and Social Development: A Look into the '80s World Congress 1983 Washington, DC, USA Personal and social responsibility in the search for mental health: Collaboration between volunteers, professionals and governments in the formation of mental health policy and the delivery of services. World Congress 1985 Brighton, England, UK Mental Health 2000 A.D. [Sub-theme: Action Programs for a World in Crisis.] World Congress 1987 Cairo, Egypt The Many Worlds of Mental Health World Congress 1989 Auckland, New Zealand Mental Health – Everyone's Concern World Congress 1991 Mexico DF, Mexico People and Science: Together for Mental Health World Congress 1993 Tokyo, Japan Mental Health: Toward the 21st Century World Congress 1995 Dublin, Ireland Time for Reflection World Congress 1997 Lahti, Finland Cornerstones for Mental Health World Congress 1998 London, England, UK Partners for Mental Health: Nations for Mental Health (50th Anniversary Symposium) World Congress 1999 Santiago, Chile Interfaces in Mental Health: Poverty, Quality of Life and Society" World Congress 2001 Vancouver, Canada Respecting Diversity in Mental Health in a Changing World World Congress 2003 Melbourne, Australia Partnerships in Health World Congress 2005 Cairo, Egypt Equity and Mental Health World Congress 2007 Hong Kong SAR, China East Meets West: Impact of Culture on Mental Health World Congress 2009 Athens, Greece Working Together for Mental Health World Congress 2011 Cape Town, South Africa The African Footprint in Global Mental Health World Congress 2013 Buenos Aires, Argentina Social Inclusion through Interdisciplinary Interventions World Congress 2015 Cairo, Egypt World Congress 2017 New Delhi, India Partnerships in mental healthWorld Congress2019Buenos Aires, ArgentinaAbordajes inclusivos en salud mental. Clínica, comunidad y derechos.
World Mental Health Day
YearTheme1994Improving the Quality of Mental Health Services throughout the World1996Women and Mental Health1997Children and Mental Health1998Mental Health and Human Rights1999Mental Health and Aging2000–01Mental Health and Work2002The Effects of Trauma and Violence on Children & Adolescents2003Emotional and Behavioural Disorders of Children & Adolescents2004The Relationship Between Physical & Mental Health: co-occurring disorders2005Mental and Physical Health Across the Life Span2006Building Awareness – Reducing Risk: Mental Illness & Suicide2007Mental Health in A Changing World: The Impact of Culture and Diversity2008Making Mental Health a Global Priority: Scaling up Services through Citizen Advocacy and Action2009Mental Health in Primary Care: Enhancing Treatment and Promoting Mental Health2010Mental Health and Chronic Physical Illnesses2011The Great Push: Investing in Mental Health2012Depression: A Global Crisis2013Mental health and older adults2014Living with Schizophrenia2015Dignity in Mental Health2016Psychological First Aid2017Mental health in the workplace2018Young people and mental health in a changing world2019Mental Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention2020Move for mental health: Increased investment in mental health2021Mental Health in an Unequal World2022Make Mental Health & Well-Being for All a Global Priority2023Mental Health is a universal human right2024It is time to Prioritize Mental Health in the Workplace2025Access to Services – Mental Health in Catastrophes and Emergencies
References
External links World Federation for Mental Health – Official website
World Fellowship for Schizophrenia and Allied Disorders – 'Information for families caring for people with mental illness' – World Health Organization, Mental Health, Home Page